Combination bearing, linkage pin and shaft coupling for a damper

ABSTRACT

An HVAC damper includes a sheet metal frame surrounding a series of pivotal damper blades that are each supported by a pair of plastic bearing members. Each bearing member is a unitary piece that includes a radial bearing, a thrust bearing, a lug for connecting to a damper blade, a shaft-receiving feature for connecting to a drive shaft, and multiple crank pins for selectively connecting to a drive linkage. Choosing which crank pin gets connected to the linkage determines a damper blade&#39;s rotational direction relative to the other damper blades. Adjacent damper blades preferably rotate in opposite directions to ensure positive sealing engagement between their adjacent blade tips. The bearing members allow the drive linkage to be installed outside the frame to avoid obstructing the airflow through the damper. During assembly, the bearing members allow the damper blades to be placed within the frame prior to installing the bearing members.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The subject invention generally pertains to an air damper of an HVACsystem (heating, ventilating and air conditioning system) and morespecifically to a bearing and drive structure for such a damper.

BACKGROUND OF RELATED ART

HVAC dampers often include a series of damper blades that can pivot tovarious degrees of opening to regulate air flowing through the damper.The drive mechanism for pivoting the damper blades often comprises acomplicated assembly of bearings, couplings, drive shafts, and linkages.The various drive components can be difficult to assemble, and often thecomponents themselves extend into the airflow path, which can create anundesirable flow obstruction.

Some dampers have a frame made of sheet metal, which inherently hasrelatively thin, sharp edges. Such edges can make it difficult toradially support the shaft of a damper blade without the sheet metaledges cutting into the shaft.

Consequently, there is a need for a multi-blade damper that has aminimum number of parts, is easy to assemble, and provides little or noobstruction to air flowing through the damper.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the invention to provide a bearing member that notonly provides a damper blade with radial and axial support but alsoprovides a means for coupling the damper blade to a drive shaft and toother damper blades.

Another object of some embodiments is to provide such a bearing memberas a unitary piece that can be plastic injection molded.

Another object of some embodiments is to provide a bearing member withmultiple crank pins that can be selectively connected to a linkage toprovide selective clockwise or counterclockwise rotation of a damperblade.

Another object of some embodiments is to provide a plurality ofidentical bearing members each having multiple crank pins that can beselectively connected to a linkage to rotate a series of damper blades,wherein some blades rotate clockwise and others counterclockwise.

Another object of some embodiments is to provide a bearing member thatincludes a radial bearing surface, a thrust bearing surface, a lug forconnecting to a damper blade, a shaft-receiving feature for connectingto a drive shaft, and multiple crank pins for connecting to one or moredrive linkages, wherein the bearing member is a unitary piece that canbe plastic injection molded.

Another object of some embodiments is to provide a damper frame made ofsheet metal that provides a journal bearing surface and a thrust bearingsurface without having to rely on the very edges of the sheet metal tosupport a damper blade, drive shaft, or plastic bearing member.

Another object of some embodiments is to enable the assembly a damper byfirst positioning a series of damper blades within a frame andsubsequently installing bearing members that support the damper bladesin both radial and axial directions.

One or more of these and/or other objects of the invention are providedby a damper that includes a plastic bearing member made of a unitarypiece that supports a damper blade, wherein the bearing member includesa radial bearing surface, a thrust bearing surface, a lug for connectingto a damper blade, a shaft-receiving feature for connecting to a driveshaft, and multiple crank pins for selectively connecting to one or moredrive linkages.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a damper.

FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view taken generally along line 2-2of FIG. 3 and showing a damper blade supported by two substantiallyidentical plastic bearing members.

FIG. 3 is an end view of a damper with its frame shown in phantom lines.

FIG. 4 is an end view similar to FIG. 3 but showing the damper closed.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a pair of substantially identicalbearing members.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view similar to the right section of FIG. 2but showing the bearing member in the process of being installed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of a damper 10 that, when assembled asshown in FIG. 2, can rotate a plurality of damper blades 12 between anopen position (FIGS. 1 and 3) and a closed position (FIGS. 2 and 4).Damper 10 can be used in various HVAC systems to control airflow suchas, for instance, return airflow, exhaust airflow, incoming freshoutdoor airflow, supply airflow, and various mixtures thereof. To openor close damper 10, a plurality of novel bearing members 14 couple adrive mechanism 16 to damper blades 14.

The basic components of damper 10 include a frame 18, at least onedamper blade 12, at least one bearing member 14, and drive mechanism 16.Although the actually construction, arrangement and quantity of partsmay vary, the present invention will be described with reference to theexample shown in FIGS. 1-6.

For this example, damper 10 happens to have four damper blades 14;however, any number of damper blades would be well within the scope ofthe invention. For the illustrated embodiment, frame 18 is formed ofsheet metal having a nominal material thickness that preferably isuniform but not necessarily so. Dimension 20 of FIG. 2 identifies afirst material thickness of a first side frame member 22, and dimension24 identifies a second material thickness of a second side frame member26, wherein both thickness values 22 and 24 can be the same. Frame 18includes first side frame member 22, second side frame member 26, anupper frame member 28 and a lower frame member 30. The four framemembers 22, 26, 28 and 30 are arranged in a generally rectangular shapeto define an inner airflow passageway 32 and an outer area 34. Therotational position of damper blades 12 (e.g., their position of FIG. 3vs. FIG. 4) determines the degree of opening of the damper's passageway32.

First and second side frame members 22 and 26 each include a journalbearing surface 36 that defines a substantially cylindrical hole 38.Referring to FIG. 6, journal bearing surface 36 has an axial length 40that is greater than the material thickness 20 or 24 of the side framemember in which journal bearing surface 36 is formed (or otherwisedisposed). Each side frame member 22 and 26 also includes a fixed thrustbearing surface 42 encircling hole 38 and facing outer area 34.

Bearing members 14 protrude through each hole 38 of side members 22 and26 such that bearing members 14 can be installed after first positioningdamper blades 12 within frame 18. Bearing member 14 includes a driveside 44 facing passageway 32 and a driven side 46 facing outer area 34.Bearing member 14 also includes a radial bearing surface 48 and a thrustbearing surface 50 that in an axial direction are between sides 44 and46. Blade-mounting lugs 52 integrally extending from drive side 44 areaffixed to damper blade 12 by some suitable means including, but notlimited to, screws 54, rivets, adhesive, or snap-in connection. Radialbearing surface 48 of bearing member 14 is radially supported by journalbearing surface 36 such that bearing member 14 can rotate within hole38. Rotatable thrust bearing surface 50 engaging fixed thrust bearingsurface 42 of first side frame member 22 limits how far damper blade 12can move away from first side frame member 22. Likewise, rotatablethrust bearing surface 50 engaging fixed thrust bearing surface 42 ofsecond side frame member 26 limits how far damper blade 12 can move awayfrom second side frame member 26.

Each bearing member 14 preferably is made of a polymeric material thatcan be cast or plastic injection molded as a unitary piece, as shown inFIG. 5. The term, “polymeric material” means any material that includesa polymer with or without nonpolymer additives. One example of asuitable material is 33% glass filled nylon 6/6; however, countlessother plastic materials are conceivable and well within the scope of theinvention.

Drive mechanism 16 could be of any suitable design. For the illustratedexample, drive mechanism 16 includes a drive shaft 56 with a radiallyenlarged hexagon head 58 that tightly fits into a hexagon socket 60 inbearing member 14 such that a radial interference fit exists betweenhead 58 and socket 60. Socket 60 is just one of many possible examplesof a shaft-receiving feature that bearing member 14 could have forconnecting to shaft 56 or some other suitable drive shaft. Theconnection between drive shaft 56 and bearing member 14 is such thatrotation of shaft 56 rotates at least one damper blade 12.

In order for shaft 56 to rotate all the damper blades 12, a plurality ofdrive links 62 connect to certain crank pins 64 that extend integrallyfrom driven side 46 of each bearing member 14. Pins 64 that are to beconnected to drive links 62 are selectively chosen such that adjacentdamper blades 12 preferably rotate in opposite directions(clockwise/counterclockwise) to ensure smooth sealing engagement of theblade tips when damper 10 closes. Each bearing member 14 having multiplepins 64 (e.g., pin 64 a and 64 b) to which linkages 62 can beselectively connected enable bearing members 14 to be used for damperswith two, three, four, or any number of damper blades. To preventadjacent blade tips from jamming end-to-end, the position of pins 64 andthe connection of links 62 are such that the blade tips rotate atdifferent rotational speeds as they approach their point of engagementwith each other.

To help hold head 58 of drive shaft 56 within socket 60, to help evenlytransmit a rotational moment to bearing members 14, and to help holdlinkages 62 to pins 64, drive mechanism 16 includes a shaft retainerplate 66 that connects to multiple pins 64 of bearing member 14. Asuitable fastener 68 can be used to hold shaft retainer plate 66 inplace. Examples of fastener 68 include, but are not limited to, a pushnut, clip, retainer ring, pin, etc. The installation of plate 66 is suchthat linkages 64 are captured between plate 66 and driven side 46, andhexagon head 58 is captured within socket 60 because head 58 is toolarge radially to fit through a central hole 70 in plate 66.

Although the invention is described with respect to a preferredembodiment, modifications thereto will be apparent to those of ordinaryskill in the art. The scope of the invention, therefore, is to bedetermined by reference to the following claims:

1. A damper, comprising: a frame comprising a first side frame memberhaving a first material thickness and a second side frame member havinga second material thickness, the frame defines an inner airflowpassageway and an outer area, wherein the inner airflow passageway isbetween the first side frame member and the second side frame member,the first side frame member includes a journal bearing surface thatdefines a substantially cylindrical hole, the journal bearing surfacehas an axial length that is greater than the first material thickness ofthe first side frame member; a damper blade disposed within the innerairflow passageway between the first side frame member and the secondside frame member; a bearing member protruding through the substantiallycylindrical hole in the first side member, the bearing member includes adrive side, a driven side, and a radial bearing surface therebetween,the drive side is affixed to the damper blade, the driven side extendsinto outer area, and the radial bearing surface is radially supported bythe journal bearing surface such that the bearing member can rotaterelative to the journal bearing surface; and a drive mechanism disposedwithin the outer area and being connected to the driven side of thebearing member to impart a rotational moment on the bearing member suchthat rotation of the bearing member rotates the damper blade, thebearing member including the drive side, the driven side and the radialbearing surface is a unitary piece of a polymeric material.
 2. Thedamper of claim 1, wherein the journal bearing surface is made of metaland the radial bearing surface is made of the polymeric material.
 3. Thedamper of claim 1, wherein the first side member including the journalbearing surface is made of sheet metal.
 4. The damper of claim 1,wherein the bearing member includes two crank pins, the drive mechanismincludes a drive link selectively connected to one of the two crankpins, and the two crank pins are included in the unitary piece of thepolymeric material.
 5. The damper of claim 1, further comprising a driveshaft, a plurality of crank pins, and a shaft retainer plate all ofwhich are disposed in the outer area, the drive shaft is part of thedrive mechanism and is attached to the driven side of the bearingmember, the plurality of crank pins extend from the driven side of thebearing member, and the shaft retainer plate is attached to theplurality of crank pins such that the shaft retainer plate helps holdthe drive shaft to the bearing member.
 6. The damper of claim 1, furthercomprising a drive shaft, the bearing member includes a shaft-receivingfeature, and an interference fit exists between the drive shaft and theshaft-receiving feature of the bearing member.
 7. The damper of claim 1,wherein the first side frame member includes a fixed thrust bearingsurface encircling the substantially cylindrical hole and facing theouter area, the bearing member includes a rotatable thrust bearingsurface engaging the fixed thrust bearing surface to limit how far thedamper blade can move away from the first side frame member, therotatable thrust bearing surface is included in the unitary piece of thepolymeric material.
 8. The damper of claim 1, further comprising aplurality of damper blades that includes the damper blade, and the drivemechanism is coupled to the plurality of damper blades such that atleast two damper blades of the plurality of damper blades rotate inopposite directions to each other.
 9. A damper, comprising: a framecomprising a first side frame member and a second side frame member, theframe defines an inner airflow passageway and an outer area, wherein theinner airflow passageway is between the first side frame member and thesecond side frame member, the first side frame member defines a hole,the first side frame member includes a fixed thrust bearing surfaceencircling the hole and facing the outer area; a damper blade disposedwithin the inner airflow passageway between the first side frame memberand the second side frame member; a bearing member being rotatablewithin and protruding through the hole in the first side member, thebearing member includes a drive side, a driven side, and a rotatablethrust bearing surface therebetween, the drive side is affixed to thedamper blade, the driven side extends into outer area, and the rotatablethrust bearing surface engages the fixed thrust bearing surface therebylimiting how far the damper blade can move away from the first sideframe member; and a drive mechanism disposed within the outer area andbeing connected to the driven side of the bearing member to impart arotational moment on the bearing member such that rotation of thebearing member rotates the damper blade, the bearing member includingthe drive side, the driven side and the rotatable thrust bearing surfaceis a unitary piece of a polymeric material.
 10. The damper of claim 9,wherein the fixed thrust bearing surface is made of metal and the radialbearing surface is made of the polymeric material.
 11. The damper ofclaim 9, wherein the first side member including the fixed thrustbearing surface is made of sheet metal.
 12. The damper of claim 9,wherein the bearing member includes two crank pins, the drive mechanismincludes a drive link selectively connected to one of the two crankpins, and the two crank pins are included in the unitary piece of thepolymeric material.
 13. The damper of claim 9, further comprising adrive shaft, a plurality of crank pins, and a shaft retainer plate allof which are disposed in the outer area, the drive shaft is part of thedrive mechanism and is attached to the driven side of the bearingmember, the plurality of crank pins extend from the driven side of thebearing member, and the shaft retainer plate is attached to theplurality of crank pins such that the shaft retainer plate helps holdthe drive shaft to the bearing member.
 14. The damper of claim 9,further comprising a drive shaft, the bearing member includes ashaft-receiving feature, and an interference fit exists between thedrive shaft and the shaft-receiving feature of the bearing member. 15.The damper of claim 9, further comprising a plurality of damper bladesthat includes the damper blade, and the drive mechanism is coupled tothe plurality of damper blades such that at least two damper blades ofthe plurality of damper blades rotate in opposite directions to eachother.
 16. A damper, comprising: a frame comprising a first side framemember having a first material thickness and a second side frame memberhaving a second material thickness, the frame defines an inner airflowpassageway and an outer area, wherein the inner airflow passageway isbetween the first side frame member and the second side frame member,the first side frame member includes a journal bearing surface thatdefines a substantially cylindrical hole, the journal bearing surfacehas an axial length that is greater than the first material thickness ofthe first side frame member, the first side frame member also includes afixed thrust bearing surface encircling the substantially cylindricalhole and facing the outer area; a damper blade disposed within the innerairflow passageway between the first side frame member and the secondside frame member; a bearing member protruding through the substantiallycylindrical hole in the first side member, the bearing member includes adrive side, a driven side, a radial bearing surface between the driveside and the driven side, and a rotatable thrust bearing surface betweenthe drive side and the driven side, the drive side is affixed to thedamper blade, the driven side extends into outer area, the radialbearing surface is radially supported by the journal bearing surfacesuch that the bearing member can rotate relative to the journal bearingsurface, and the rotatable thrust bearing surface engages the fixedthrust bearing surface thereby limiting how far the damper blade canmove away from the first side frame member; and a drive mechanismdisposed within the outer area and being connected to the driven side ofthe bearing member to impart a rotational moment on the bearing membersuch that rotation of the bearing member rotates the damper blade, thebearing member including the drive side, the driven side, the rotatablethrust bearing surface, and the radial bearing surface is a unitarypiece of a polymeric material.
 17. The damper of claim 16, wherein thebearing member includes two crank pins, the drive mechanism includes adrive link selectively connected to one of the two crank pins, and thetwo crank pins are included in the unitary piece of the polymericmaterial.
 18. The damper of claim 16, further comprising a drive shaft,a plurality of crank pins, and a shaft retainer plate all of which aredisposed in the outer area, the drive shaft is part of the drivemechanism and is attached to the driven side of the bearing member, theplurality of crank pins extend from the driven side of the bearingmember, and the shaft retainer plate is attached to the plurality ofcrank pins such that the shaft retainer plate helps hold the drive shaftto the bearing member.
 19. The damper of claim 16, further comprising adrive shaft, the bearing member includes a shaft-receiving feature, andan interference fit exists between the drive shaft and theshaft-receiving feature of the bearing member.
 20. The damper of claim16, further comprising a plurality of damper blades that includes thedamper blade, and the drive mechanism is coupled to the plurality ofdamper blades such that at least two damper blades of the plurality ofdamper blades rotate in opposite directions to each other.
 21. A damper,comprising: a frame defining an inner airflow passageway and an outerarea; a first damper blade disposed within the inner airflow passageway;a second damper blade disposed within the inner airflow passageway; afirst bearing member comprising a first drive side affixed to the firstdamper blade and a first driven side facing the outer area, the firstbearing member is rotatably supported by the frame such that the firstbearing member and the first damper blade rotate together; a secondbearing member comprising a second drive side affixed to the seconddamper blade and a second driven side facing the outer area, the secondbearing member is rotatably supported by the frame such that the secondbearing member and the second damper blade rotate together, each of thefirst driven side and the second driven side includes a pin-A and apin-B that extend into the outer area; and a drive linkage coupling thepin-A of the first driven side to the pin-B of the second driven side tocoordinate the rotation of the first bearing member and the secondbearing member, the first bearing member including the first drive side,the first driven side, and the pin-A and the pin-B of the first bearingmember is a unitary piece of a polymeric material, the first bearingmember and the second bearing member are substantially identical inconstruction.
 22. The damper of claim 21, further comprising a driveshaft and a shaft retainer plate both of which are disposed in the outerarea, the drive shaft is attached to the first driven side of the firstbearing member, and the shaft retainer plate is attached to the pin-Aand the pin-B of the first driven side such that the shaft retainerplate helps hold the drive shaft to the first bearing member.
 23. Thedamper of claim 21, further comprising a drive shaft, the first bearingmember includes a shaft-receiving feature, and an interference fitexists between the drive shaft and the shaft-receiving feature of thefirst bearing member.
 24. The damper of claim 21, the first damper bladeand the second damper blade rotate in opposite directions to each other.